Harrogate Gasworks Railway

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Coordinates: 54°00′50″N 1°32′38″W / 54.014°N 1.544°W / 54.014; -1.544
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Harrogate Gasworks Railway
A small narrow-gauge green engine
Locomotive Barber, on the Statfold Barn Railway
Overview
Other name(s)The Barber Line
StatusClosed
LocaleHarrogate, North Yorkshire, England
Coordinates54°00′50″N 1°32′38″W / 54.014°N 1.544°W / 54.014; -1.544
Termini
  • Bilton Junction
  • Ripon Road
Service
TypeLight rail
History
Opened1908
Closed1956
Technical
Line length1 mi (1.6 km)
Number of tracks1
Track gauge2 ft (610 mm)

Harrogate Gasworks Railway was an industrial railway in the town of Harrogate, North Yorkshire,[note 1] England. The line was a narrow gauge railway that ran between Bilton Junction on the Leeds and Thirsk Railway, to the Harrogate Gas Company's (HGC) works at New Park, north of the town centre. It opened in 1908 to carry inbound coal for gasification, and was closed to traffic in 1956. The railway was noted for its tight gauge restrictions in the tunnel through New Park. Two of its steam locomotives have survived into preservation, and are still in use on heritage railways.

History

A company to provide gas for Harrogate was formed in 1845, gaining an Act of Parliament in 1846, with the gasworks being built in the same year as the act was granted.[1] Until 1880, coal was transported by road from Starbeck coal depot, some 3 miles (4.8 km) away, then later, a switch of forwarding location to Bilton was made. Bilton Junction was where the Leeds Northern Line diverged with one line south-west to Harrogate railway station, and another south-east towards Starbeck.[2][3] Due to the complaints from the local population regarding damage to the roads caused by the transport of coal from Bilton Junction to the gasworks, and the noise and pollution from the steam-powered road vehicles, a railway was built between 1907 and 1908 by the owners of the gasworks. Requests to the North Eastern Railway[note 2] to build the railway line were refused, so the company built it themselves.[5] The directors of the company petitioned the shareholders to raise £20,000 (equivalent to £1,319,000 in 2023) for a railway capable of carrying 100,000 tonnes (110,000 tons) of coal per year.[6][7] The transhipment facility at Bilton junction allowed for inward freighted coal for gasification to be loaded onto trucks on the narrow gauge line using gravity, which was expected to take only two minutes to transfer the load into four wagons. By-products from the gasification process at HGC (including tar), were similarly back-loaded at Bilton transhipment point onto main-line wagons, this time with the narrow-gauge wagons above the mainline wagons, with gravity loading again being the way of transhipping the gooods.[8][9]

The new railway branched westwards from Bilton Junction in north-eastern Harrogate,[10] but the main engineering feature of the 1-mile (1.6 km) branch, was an 800-yard (730 m) long tunnel,[note 3] which was 9 feet (2.7 m) high, and only 8 feet (2.4 m) wide.[13][14][15] The original intent had been to line the tunnel throughout with stone, however, whilst it had stone portals, the rest was constructed mostly of concrete, which varied in thickness from 12 inches (300 mm) to 15 inches (380 mm).[16] The tunnel had one ventilation shaft, and it took an s-bend course in the southern half of the bore underneath the Skipton to Harrogate road (what would become the A59).[17] The section of tunnel under the A59 road was re-inforced with brick.[8] The tunnel took the railway under some houses and the road, to exit on the eastern side of the Harrogate to Ripon road (what is now the A61); the gasworks was located on the other side of the road.[7][13] The tunnel was the first part of the line to be constructed (in April 1907), via a 53-foot (16 m) shaft.[8] The line was engineered by Edward Wilson Dixon, who had also built the Colsterdale Light Railway between Masham and Roundhill Reservoir. Wilson was impressed by the Thomas Green locomotives he had ordered, and ordered another (known as "Barber") for the gasworks line.[18]

Several locomotives were used on the line, including a Hunslet 4-6-0, ex War Department locomotive built for the First World War susbequently named Spencer,[19] and a Peckett engine, numbered 2050 (the works number).[20][21] The most famous locomotive to work the line was Barber, named after the gasworks company's owner, Francis Barber.[22] The locomotive is rare due to its cut down cab, necessitated because of the low-height gauge of the New Park Tunnel. So tight were the restrictions in the tunnel, that a hatch was cut into the back of the cab which would allow the crew to evacuate onto the line, rather than through the side of the locomotive.[23] Spencer was initially a 24-inch (60 cm) gauge loco, and was converted to 2 feet (0.61 m) gauge, and had modifications to its height so that it could run within the tunnel.[24] Francis Barber's name was also applied to the line itself, being known locally as the Barber Line.[25] Further locomotives were purchased, including a Peckett steam engine, and a Drewry diesel shunter.[26][27]

Initially the line was worked only two of three days per week, but as demand for gas and electricity grew, so the operation was expanded, which also meant purchasing extra locomotives. However, the new engine (Spencer) had 22% less power than Barber, and could not haul the coal wagons up the 1-in-21 incline to Knox bridge, so a diversion was built with a gradient of 1-in-25.[24][28] As demand for gas increased, the amount of coal for the works needed to keep pace with that demand; 38,550 tonnes (42,490 tons) was carried in 1924, 51,500 tonnes (56,800 tons) in 1940, and 40,000 tonnes (44,000 tons) in 1953, but 28,000 tonnes (31,000 tons) of that last figure came by road transport. By this time, it was discovered that road transport was some 33% more economical than the railway. This caused the owners to abandon the railway, and go back to road transportation.[29][30]

The last train ran in July 1956, after which all of the structures of the line were demolished.[30] In 2007, a small museum opened next to the southern portal of the tunnel. The New Park School created a secret garden to commemorate the railway.[31]

Rolling stock

Builder Wheel arrangement Works No. Operating No. Name Dates in service Notes Ref
Thomas Green & Son 0-6-2 441 441 Barber 1908–1949 Barber was preserved after its removal from the railway. The locomotive has worked on the South Tynedale Railway [32][33]
Hunslet 4-6-0 1340 3224[a] Spencer 1920–1944 Built by Hunslet in February 1919, it never saw war service, and was re-gauged by Hunslet in 1920. Withdrawn in 1944, and sold for scrap in 1946. [24][34]
Peckett & Sons 0-6-0 2050 1944–1956 After closure of the railway, this locomotive was acquired by the Ffestiniog Railway in 1957. The loco later underwent restoration at the Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway, before working on the Statfold Barn Railway. In preservation, the loco has been named Harrogate. [24][35][36][21]
Drewry 0-6-0 2262 1949–1956 After closure, this locomotive was acquired by an industrial concern in Zimbabwe [30][35]
  1. ^ This was the War Departments operating number.

The company also operated various coal wagons and tar tanks, including several Twinberrow steel-sided coal wagons, 25 feet (7.6 m) long, and capable of taking a payload of 10 tonnes (11 tons).[6] One short wooden-built coal wagon was retained purely for carrying coal for the steam locomotive engines.[37]

Notes

  1. ^ When the railway was in operation, the town was in the West Riding of Yorkshire, being moved into North Yorkshire in 1974.
  2. ^ The North Eastern Railway operated the railway system in and around Harrogate at that time.[4]
  3. ^ Various lengths exist for the tunnel, including 656 yards (600 m),[11] and 600 yards (550 m).[12]

References

  1. ^ Mackay 1969, p. 435.
  2. ^ Chapman 2011, p. i.
  3. ^ "Harrogate Gas Company". discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  4. ^ Hoole, K. (1965). A regional history of the railways of Great Britain. Vol. 4, North East England. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. Endpaper map. ISBN 0-7153-6439-1.
  5. ^ Rogers, James (2000). Railways of Harrogate and district. Manchester: North Eastern Railway Association. p. 83. ISBN 1-873513-33-X.
  6. ^ a b "The North-East Coast[sic] a Narrow Gauge Light Railway". The Times. No. 38507. 4 December 1907. p. 5. ISSN 0140-0460.
  7. ^ a b Household 1995, p. 145.
  8. ^ a b c Mackay 1969, p. 436.
  9. ^ Chapman 2011, p. 49.
  10. ^ Robinson 1926, p. 99.
  11. ^ "Disused tunnels database". www.forgottenrelics.co.uk. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  12. ^ Household 1995, p. 144.
  13. ^ a b Bright 2021, p. 8.
  14. ^ Chapman 2011, p. 8.
  15. ^ "Restored locomotive serves up memories". The Yorkshire Post. 5 July 2014. p. 6. ISSN 0963-1496.
  16. ^ Household 1995, p. 149.
  17. ^ Robinson 1926, p. 100.
  18. ^ Bright 2021, p. 9.
  19. ^ Clay, Jonathan (2015). Locomotive portraits. Barnsley: Pen & Sword. p. 139. ISBN 978-1783463886.
  20. ^ "Editorial". Industrial Railway Record (37). London: IRS Publications: 61. June 1971. ISSN 0537-5347.
  21. ^ a b Bright 2021, p. 13.
  22. ^ Henderson, Tony (8 June 2018). "Steam trains return to village as station reopens after 42 years". Chronicle Live. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
  23. ^ Bright 2021, pp. 8, 10.
  24. ^ a b c d Mackay 1969, p. 437.
  25. ^ "Celebration of the 160th anniversary of the central railway station (free exhibition 30 & 31 July)". Harrogate Informer. 27 July 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
  26. ^ Household 1995, p. 148.
  27. ^ "Bilton Historical Society Newsletter - What's that smell? Part 2" (PDF). studioharrogate.co.uk. July 2015. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
  28. ^ Household 1995, p. 151.
  29. ^ Robinson 1926, p. 102.
  30. ^ a b c Mackay 1969, p. 438.
  31. ^ "Harrogate & Districts History Harrogate". harrogateguide.co.uk. 24 September 2022. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
  32. ^ Household 1995, p. 146.
  33. ^ Bright 2021, p. 11.
  34. ^ Household 1995, pp. 150–152.
  35. ^ a b Household 1995, p. 153.
  36. ^ Winton, John (1986). The little wonder : 150 years of the Festiniog Railway. London: M. Joseph. p. 219. ISBN 0718127129.
  37. ^ Household 1995, p. 147.

Sources

  • Bright, Thomas (28 May 2021). "Raising the Roof". Steam Railway. No. 519. Peterborough: Bauer Media. ISSN 0143-7232.
  • Chapman, Stephen (2011). Harrogate & Wetherby. Bellcode. ISBN 978-1871233-24-7.
  • Household, Humphrey (1995). Narrow gauge railways: England and the fifteen inch. Leicester: P. R. C. Ltd. ISBN 1856481786.
  • Mackay, A. N. (August 1969). "Back to Square One". Railway Magazine. Vol. 115, no. 820. London: IPC. ISSN 0033-8923.
  • Robinson, E. J. (August 1926). "An Interesting Narrow Gauge Railway". Railway Magazine. No. 350. London. ISSN 0033-8923.

External links

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